Multiple clients who use chemicals in the course of their businesses have recently asked us questions such as these: “A label company salesperson is telling me that effective June 1, 2015, OSHA will require labels on chemical containers to have pictograms, signal words and hazard and precautionary statements. Do we have to relabel all the manufacturers’ containers of chemicals we

Although nowhere near as exciting as tales of Bigfoot or handy ancient aliens who enjoyed building pyramids in their spare time, there are some persistent OSHA-related myths which are just as untrue. There are so many there’s not room enough in one column for them all, so we’re just covering a sample. Here are some of those myths, plus one

As a rookie OSHA Safety Engineer I was taught when there was a specific rule for a particular condition, we had to use that rule, and not try to hold an employer to a stricter standard by writing a Section 5(a)(1) “General Duty Clause” citation. The Field Inspection Reference Manual says, “Section 5(a)(1) shall not normally be used to impose

It used to be the case that cut-resistant gloves were bulky, stainless steel contraptions used mainly on meat-packing lines. Now, light cut-resistant gloves made of Kevlar, Aramax or other tough materials are used in jobs where dexterity and feel are more important, but there’s a need to prevent cuts to hands while working with sharp tools. They’ve also become of

As supervisors, there are lots of important operating factors we’re responsible for on a daily, hourly, even minute-by-minute basis. Quality, productivity, efficiency, safety, compliance with food safety, USDA, EPA, DOT, and other standards, customer service… all are important. None of them should eclipse the others. For example, great productivity doesn’t accomplish anything if poor quality leads to customer complaints, efficiency

Nothing pushes a safety or health topic onto the radar faster than an upward spike in OSHA citations. Although hexavalent chromium isn’t anywhere near the top of the “Most Cited OSHA Standards” list, it has popped up a couple of times lately with some of my clients. These citations remind us of the relevance of these rather loftily technical regulations

Facts: No Fault Insurance Carrier, Citizens Insurance Company of American (Citizens) filed suit against the U.S. with respect to eight motorists injured before the Medicare Secondary Payer Act became effective on December 5, 1980. Each of the injured motorists was covered by Medicare since 2005. Citizens paid medical expenses for the injured motorists under the requirements of the Michigan No-Fault

In the food industry, we know our goal: to get healthly, safe, appealing food from the producers to the customers in a sustainable, cost-effective way. If done right it benefits the producers, processors, packagers, distributors, retailers and customers. Making sure our people are safe is an important part of making it happen. Yet as much time as we might spend

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for visiting. The Food Chain is a exploration of the risks that confront the most vital enterprise: the food industry. From earth to hearth, each step in the process of bringing food to the table carries unique risks. Our goal is to expose those risks and examine ways to make our food - and the industry that provides it - safer.